


Pancake Night

by Sachi_Grace



Series: Starlit Love [5]
Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Dreams and Nightmares, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Friendship/Love, Momoharu Week
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-07
Updated: 2020-05-07
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:02:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,152
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24057169
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sachi_Grace/pseuds/Sachi_Grace
Summary: Day 5: Dreams/MemoriesComing out of the simulation meant they all had to handle their ghosts and their guilt. It was a matter of time before Shuichi asked for help...and to see things in a different way.
Relationships: Harukawa Maki/Momota Kaito
Series: Starlit Love [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1731013
Comments: 4
Kudos: 19





	Pancake Night

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much Momoharu Week 2020 for hosting this event. I'm grateful that I get to be apart of this. 
> 
> This isn't as "relationship" centric as I would've liked, but...I'm making excuses. I hope you guys enjoy this.
> 
> Thank you so much for you support! Your kudos, comments, hits, bookmarks, and subscriptions mean a lot to me.

The bell above the diner jingled, alerting everyone in the vicinity that Kaito and Maki had entered. Maki was already unwrapping her scarf and Kaito was pulling his gloves off. The winter was a little more harsh during the night than it was during the day, but they had gotten a text saying that tonight was Pancake Night, and Kaito tried not to miss any of those if he could. Maki didn’t usually dare come to any of them, since Kokichi was mostly there, but...if anything, if it was Shuichi who requested it, then Maki was for sure coming even when Kaito told her that Kokichi might be there too, considering.

Shuichi normally didn’t request the sacred pancake nights. Like Kaito, he tried to be at every single one of them too, regardless who requested it. Even if they ended on bad terms, or they weren’t considered friends, Shuichi tried to reach out to everyone, and Kaito adored that in his sidekick. It meant that he was growing as a person. It meant that he knew now that it was okay to be vulnerable. He was just a little surprised that Kaede nor anyone else was coming to this. 

Then again, Kaito didn’t think Shuichi used the group chat to ask for his or Maki’s appearance. “Yo.” He greeted as he walked over to the table. Maki had already taken off her coat and was folding it in her arms, watching the two boys. Kokichi was sitting next to Shuichi, blowing a paper wrapper from the end of his straw and Shuichi had been in the middle of trying to grab it out of his hands. “You guys already ordered?”

“Aw Momota-chan and HaruMaki showed up to date night. I’m a little disappointed.” Kokichi whined. Kaito had half of the mind to punch him, but Maki had other ideas, already sliding into the booth and giving Kokcihi a _stare_. It was clear that there was still bad blood between them, despite the simulation. Kaito already put his ghosts to rest, but...that didn’t mean everyone else did. “Awaaahhh! HaruMaki’s scary!” Kokcihi burst into crocodile tears as he clung onto Shuichi.

Kaito took a good look at his sidekick, and he could see Maki’s expression shift as well. He slid into the booth next to her, and he could already tell that Maki was thinking the same thing he was. Ignoring the loudmouth beside Shuichi, he spoke calmly. “You look dead Shuichi.”

“Ah, yeah.” Shuichi didn’t tug down his hat, nor did he try to avert his gaze. He was calmly patting Kokichi’s hand, in mindless thoughtfulness. “It’s…” He trailed off and Kaito nodded encouragingly.

“Pancake night.” Kokichi said, drying his eyes and looking at his hands bored. “You the rules of it.”

The rules of it were simple. Whoever called Pancake Night was the one that was allowed to vent about anything. From the smallest little thing that happened that day, to the biggest most gruesome thing that was in their mind. Some people couldn’t handle the reminders of the game and usually didn’t come to these nights, but...those who did usually were the ones that needed it the most. The last person who requested it was Himiko and she had been...in a very rough state. Kaito was afraid of letting her leave the restaurant. He was going to have to remind himself to call her tomorrow if Shuichi didn’t.

“You look like shit.” Maki decided to cut through the tiptoeing and Shuichi’s hands tightened into fists. “Nightmares? Dreams?”

“A bit of both. It feels ridiculous…”

“Nothing about this is.” Kaito assured. “Just talk to us man. We’re here for you.” He reached over and grabbed Maki’s hand and Maki squeezed slightly. Kokichi looked like he was ready to start up something, but a quick look from Maki froze that instantly. 

Shuichi thought for a moment, the silence lingering. It was a good thing since the waitress swung by to get everyone’s drink order as well as the usual double stack of pancakes that were going to be split among them. Kokcihi asked for strawberry and blueberry syrup as always. “I keep going back there.”

“To which part?” Kaito asked, already getting an idea of where this was going.

He wasn't wrong to assume. “Mostly to you and Kokichi’s death.”

Well...that explained why Kokichi was there then. Kokichi didn’t seem to be phased by it. He probably expected it. Kaito on the other hand leaned back into the chair and glanced over at Maki. It was a common conversation between them as well. Maki didn’t talk about her nightmares or dreams, but he knew when she cuddled against him, it was about him. He knew when she went to the gym early morning and before he could even offer to come it was about the plan, about the switch. About confessing her love to him and realizing that it was never going to come true.

It was luck. It was really pure luck that the simulation was what it was. Otherwise, Kaito was going to miss out on so much. Maki was the one that spoke, sharp and cool. “It sucks.”

“Ahaha. Yeah. But I wasn’t trying to make you guys feel guilty or…” Shuichi trailed off. Kaito pursed his lips together, watching his sidekick shuffle through his thoughts. “Or feel like you did wrong. What you two did was...brilliant. I just…”

“Feel guilty.” Kokichi decided to save him from the suffering. “Shumai you’re a lunatic. You’re not supposed to feel guilty about that.”

“You always take more responsibility than you should. You’re going to wind up dead from a heart attack if you keep doing that.” Maki frowned, watching Shuichi with firm red eyes. “You always try to take the guilt when it’s not yours to carry. No wonder you’re not sleeping. How are you sleeping when every time you look around there’s a ghost in the corner.”

“Maki Roll come on.” Kaito frowned at her. “That’s a bit harsh. Shuichi can’t help what his brain comes up with! That’s why we’re here! We just gotta figure out how to change the mindset.”

“Don’t you two ever think about it? Dream about it?” Shuichi asked and it made Kaito freeze.

Kokichi didn’t fare much better. Kaito noticed that the careful mask the trickster wore was falling at the seams. “Of course I don’t.” Kokichi said after a moment. “Why would I dream about something that I did on purpose? Silly beloved.”

Maki made a face at the nickname, but Shuichi rarely reacted to it anymore. It was probably said so much, it lost all meaning. Kaito on the other hand knew that this was important. “Well if Kokichi is going to be a coward about it, then it’s up to me to step up to the plate and be a man about it.” Kaito punched his fists together in his determined gesture and he could feel Maki’s gaze linger on him. Whether it was out of fondness or if she was just exasperated at his antics like usual, Kaito didn’t notice. At the moment, he couldn’t afford to pay attention to that right now. “Yeah I have nightmares.”

Maki may not talk about hers, but she had been across the dining table when he had woken up with air leaving his lungs and seeing stars that were fake and childish linger in behind his eyelids. She was there kneeling in the bathroom, rubbing his back as he lost all contents of his stomach when he felt like he had to be coughing up _something._ She was there when looking up at the sky was too much and gave him an existential crisis about whether or not he was truly alive or truly dead. 

Kaito wasn’t afraid to peel back his layers. “It sucks, like Maki Roll says, but…” he trailed off. “I think the worst part of it is waking up and wondering if you’re really there. There are times I think I should be in a spaceship going to my death, and there’s times I dream about pushing that button.” He glanced at Kokichi. “As annoying as you are, and as much as I don’t mind punching you, I don’t want you dead.”

“Awwww I’m _loved_.” Kokichi gushed.

“Stop talking.” Maki gave Kokichi a firm glare. 

“Kokichi sometimes dreams about the hydraulic press, but…you know how he is.” Shuichi gestured.

“Again. Why would I be bothering any of you about any of this?” Kokichi’s mask once more slipped over his face.

“Because we’re all guilty of something.” Kaito pointed out. “We’re not going to blame you, Kokichi if you have nightmares, but...you’re not what Pancake Night is about right now. We’re trying to focus on Shuichi.”

“N-no it’s my fault.” Shuichi held his hands up. “Maybe my nightmare was a-”

“Stop.” Maki said forcefully and Shuichi slumped back into his seat. Kaito glanced at his girlfriend who was watching their best friend. “You don’t get to take their sins. What they did is on them.” She pointed at Kokichi first, and then Kaito. “Believe me. I already had my words with Kaito about how I felt. We’re just waiting for you to snap. You’re too mild-mannered. You don’t get angry often enough. When we ended Danganronpa, that was the first time I’ve actually seen you livid.”

“You should’ve seen it when he told me about his Ultimate Talent. Got right up and angry. I never thought he’d bite!” Kaito commented.

“You made fun of my beloved?! For shame Momota-chan!” Kokichi placed a hand over his heart and dramatically fell against Shuichi’s shoulder. “I should have my men come after you for that you know.” 

Maki paused for a moment, clearly annoyed that she had gotten off track with where she was going with her story. Finally she spoke, placing her arms against the table and leaning in. “Look, Shuichi.” She stated. “I get why you had Kaito and Kokichi come here. You want to apologize to them. Like it’s going to make the guilt and the nightmares go away. Himiko called Tenko the other day and they had a long conversation about the very same thing you’re trying to talk about now.” Both Kaito and Kokichi clamped their mouths shut, watching Maki and Shuichi. “You’re not reacting correctly.”

“Not…” Shuichi gave Maki a cool look. “I was supposed to be smarter than that. I ruined their plans.” He was starting to tick off the flaws off of his fingers. “I couldn’t think of who was under the hydraulic press until too late, I couldn’t figure out that it was Tsumugi who was roleplaying as the mastermind. I’m a detective! A useless one at that!”

“Is...that what you really think?” Kokichi asked.

Kaito already heard this once before. “Shut up.” He knew he was getting glares from Kokichi and from Shuichi and decided to raise his voice a little. “Where’s the confidence that you had when you ended Danganronpa?! Come on, man. You know how to keep your chin up! Look at what you were able to do! You caused them to _bankrupt._ There’s no more killing game. No more hospitalized kids. I know you get letters from previous players who are thanking you on bended knee and yeah, you deserve that kind of recognition! You did everything you could with all of the information that you were provided. I made you my sidekick for a reason right?! You did just fine in that trial. Sure it had it’s hiccups, but we’re all human. We can’t plan for every little thing.”

Shuichi blinked at him as though it was the first time he was truly seeing Kaito. Kaito decided to point one more thing out to him, just to be on the safe side. “Besides, you two were supposed to look out for each other. You made sure to help Maki realize that it wasn’t going to be her fault that it was going to happen. I was already dying. Kokichi was already dying. There was just...someone was going to die. We chose the way we knew it should go.”

“I’ve been telling him that, but my beloved doesn't believe me.” Kokichi glanced at his nails, offhandedly. “I sure hope he believes you.”

“N-no I belive you both it’s just-”

“The brain sucks.” Maki interjected. “We get it. You need to call these nights more often, Shuichi. Before you look like you’re about to fall out of your seat.”

“Told you!” Kokichi singsonged.

X

Leaving pancake night meant going back through the briskness of the winter’s cold chill. It was nearing dawn now, and Kaito felt exhaustion settle bone deep. They waved Kokichi and Shuichi off at a corner and now Maki and Kaito were walking side by side together as they headed back to their apartment. Kaito was grateful that they chose someplace close to the city to live. It was weird to see it dead without all the people around, the neon reflecting against the windows and streets with a will to entice them to look. There weren’t white noised conversations that could drown out the soft hum of the cars or the thoughts that were currently whirling in his mind.

Kaito stuffed his hands into his pockets as he thought about what had just transpired. He knew that Shuichi was suffering. He thought about his nightmares, about his own dreams, and he thought about all the good that came out of the killing game too. He should’ve mentioned that. Maybe he could text it to Shuichi, or maybe if the next time the conversation came to light, he could push him towards that direction too. There had been so much good that came out of something terrible, and bloodsoaked. He looked over a Maki who was adjusting her scarf to keep herself warm. He reached down and gently took the scarf from her hands, adjusting it for her and tightening it.

Maki stayed quiet and let him do as he pleased. When he was satisfied that she would be kept warm, he reached and took a gloved hand into his, intertwining their fingers together. “You’re thinking.” Maki said, calm as snow that was slowly drifting on the breeze. “About what?”

“Oh...just wondering if I’m dreaming right now.” Kaito commented.

Maki’s expression turned just slightly annoyed. “You’re an idiot. You’re not sleep walking.”

“No. But tonight’s been a good night.” Kaito grinned at her. “Even if we had to go to Pancake Night. It was a good night.”

“How...was it good?” Maki huffed, her breath turning into fog as she looked up at him. Red eyes held curiosity.

“I was thinking about what Shuichi said about the nightmare, but...it wasn’t all that bad. I feel kind of bad that I didn’t tell him that. There were a lot of things that were good that came from it. If you know where to look.” Kaito explained.

Maki seemed to understand his train of thought, for she looked away immediately and pulled her hand from his grip so that she could grab her pigtail and start tugging at it furiously. The scarf hid the pout and puffed cheeks, but Kaito had that expression memorized. He knew that she was flustered and she knew that he was talking about her and Shuichi and all the moments in between. 

He knew that not everyone focused on the moments in between. The nightmares were louder than their hopes and their dreams and their passions. Kaito wondered if maybe he should start trying to encourage them to remember what made them all Ultimates to begin with. Even if their talents were fake, the passion that they had behind them was real. It was easily demonstrated with himself, Shuichi, and Kokichi. They just needed the rest of the class to follow. Though, Kaito did wish that Maki wouldn’t follow an assassin's way of life as her passion or goal. Though he couldn’t blame her if she did. 

“That was cheesy. Gross and cheesy.” Maki sighed after a moment, letting her pigtail go. Her words didn’t mean much as she reached and took Kaito’s hand back into hers, lacing their fingers back together in a simple lock and grip. “You have other Pancake Nights to do that. Shuichi’s on your phone too. You have methods of reaching him, if you’d just take them.”

“We should get back into training.” Kaito mused thoughtfully. “Have him work out more with us. That’ll get rid of the nightmares for sure.”

“No that just represses them.” Maki was exasperated and fond. “Though it might help him get some sleep.”

“God he needs that.”

“You need that too.” Maki replied bluntly and Kaito laughed, rubbing the back of his neck. “You should be taking your own advice.”

“I know, Maki Roll, I’m not good at that am I?” Kaito grinned and Maki wondered if he took anything seriously. Kaito just couldn’t let other people worry about him for too long. “How do you fight off your nightmares?”

“They’re not real.” Maki replied simply. “I’m here now. I’m not going to waste another second or another minute trying to fight something that’s not true.” 

“No dreams to counter it?”

“This _is_ my dream.” Maki pointed at him and then pointed at their hands. “Even if it is messy and full of nightmares and waking up to cold beds. I wanted this. So I’m going to stick with you and stick with us. Assassins don’t get to have happy endings, Kaito. As far as I’m concerned, this is a happy ending that’s lasted me a long time.”

“Oh.” Kaito’s cheeks burned a bright red, but his grin was toothy and shining. “Wow, Maki Roll, I didn’t think you’d get this passionate.”

“Shut up.” Maki tried to tug her hand away from him, but Kaito squeezed instead. She relented after a moment, squeezing back painfully, making him wince. “What about you? How do you fight your nightmares off?”

“I have you.” 

“I’m scarier than your nightmare.” Maki deadpanned. 

“No that’s not what I was trying to say!” This time Kaito really did let her go. “I was saying that I have you. You chase away my nightmares just by being there with me. By supporting me. You’re a true sidekick Maki Roll, and an awesome girlfriend. You mean the world to me. I’m not going to let some measly nightmare get me down, when I got the girl of my dreams supporting me! Anyone else would be jealous.”

Once more Maki’s cheeks puffed but she didn’t reach for her pigtails this time clearly too flustered to do anything. “You’re still an idiot.”

“Whatever you say, Maki Roll. Whatever you say.” Kaito reached and gently wrapped his arm around her shoulders and brought her close to him as they headed back to their apartment.


End file.
